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Foxconn Roundup

From the beginning, it should have been clear to any reasonable person that the Foxconn project was ill-conceived, and destructive of nearby homeowners’ rights. Yet for all the bad news about that fraudulent project, there is still more bad news to relate.

Back in 2017, there was no ambiguity over what Foxconn Technology Group would build in Wisconsin. It was spelled out in a 29-page contract signed by then-Gov. Scott Walker and Foxconn’s top executives.

Veteran analysts of the flat-panel industry, which is based entirely in Asia, are openly skeptical that even the smaller cousin of that massive plant — what’s known as “Generation 6” — will be built in Wisconsin.

When reached for an update this past week, industry expert Bob O’Brien of Display Supply Chain Consultants spoke of the changing dynamics driving Foxconn’s shifting plans for Wisconsin. The market is glutted by flat screens. He said a new Foxconn LCD plant anywhere appears unlikely. Even Foxconn’s 10.5 plant being built in China has been put on hold until flat panel pricing improves.

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When reached for an update this past week, industry expert Bob O’Brien of Display Supply Chain Consultants spoke of the changing dynamics driving Foxconn’s shifting plans for Wisconsin. The market is glutted by flat screens. He said a new Foxconn LCD plant anywhere appears unlikely. Even Foxconn’s 10.5 plant being built in China has been put on hold until flat panel pricing improves.

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2 comments for “Foxconn Roundup”

joe

03/07/2019 at 10:49 AM

There is a lot of collateral damage to WI from the whole botched Foxconn episode. One of the big losers is Scott Walker. He bet (with our money) the farm on Foxconn rescuing from his dismal record on job creation. That he is not governor any more is directly attributable to Foxconn. He is now imagining he can get to be a Senator from Wisco-World. Not going to happen, no matter how much he dares to dream.

It will be interesting to see how many takers he get for his $25K/shot inspirational-speaker bridge-career. How many organizations will want to pay that much to hear how to sucker into a scam of gargantuan proportions, now that there is no political benefit in hiring Walker? Rather few, I expect.

I expect that the good citizens of Pleasant Prairie are less than pleased with the whole sugar-plum fairy of a deal leaving them with a lot of really expensive land to pay off. I fully expect that there will be some sort of legislation to spread the pain over the whole state, rather than just Racine County.

JOHN ADAMS

03/07/2019 at 1:06 PM

Walker advanced – as Trump is advancing – a theory of cronyism as legitimate economic and fiscal policy. It’s a tragedy that ordinary residents lost their homes over Walker’s vainglorious project. There is, however, rough justice in the ruin of his reputation.

Walker, as @ScottWalker, struggles on Twitter – he’s humorless and dull. If he can’t manage a tweet between 140 and 280 characters, one can only imagine how he could handle a high-paid speech. Every speaking contact with Walker should come with a money-back guarantee.

If he spent ninety minutes reading aloud something truly clever to his audience – Gulliver’s Travels, let’s say – he’d find a way to make the passages boring.

It would be interesting to see a list of organizations, if any, that would (1) pay him and (2) actually expect their members to sit through the experience. Simply giving him a check, without any expectation that he’d say a word, would – however wasteful – still show greater respect for an organization’s membership than asking them to listen to him.